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Google Translate: Removing EAL Barriers

I have a student in my class for three weeks. She lives in China but has come to Melbourne for a short time. Naturally she has had some trouble being able to communicate because English is not her first language. Off their own bat, two girls in my class decided to help her out by using Google Translate to convey the instructions in her language, then to continue communicating with her so she could participate in their group. Three students who did not speak each other’s languages worked together on making a film today. I am in awe of the powerful combination of kids and technology. Anyone who says tech does not belong in the classroom is wrong.

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Machine translation (or MT) is translation of text that is processed completely by computer software, from its original language to its target language. There is no human intervention in MT. It is also known as automated/ automatic translation or instant translation. It has been developing since the 1940’s, and has been evolving steadily with new techniques, capabilities and technical advancements in its field.